Kaz Brekker does not get down on his knees
by Avaloner
Summary: Kaz's job for the night was to keep the little girl occupied. So he begins a bedtime story about a boy cursed to crumble to dust if he ever touches anyone and the Wraith Queen who saves him.


**AN:**** A****pparently I really like Kaz/Inej. Didn't realise it until this fanfiction. : ) ****Used my imagination with the Suli traditions here. **

**The Six of Crows universe belongs to Leigh Bardugo. **

* * *

His job for tonight was to keep the little girl occupied till her mother arrived. How hard could it be?

'You have to tell me a story. Mama always tells me a story,' the four-year-old insisted, her dark eyes wide awake in the candlelit dimness of the room.

'Ah, but I'm afraid I don't know any good stories,' replied Kaz, sitting on a chair next to her, his cane resting against the head of her little bed. It was true, his world was full of nasty stories.

'You can make it up,' the girl commanded.

'Let's see.' Kaz's eyes rested on the window behind her bed. 'Once upon a time there was a boy. A water witch had cursed him so that he would crumble to dust if he ever touched anyone. So he had to wear gloves all the time. But it all changed when he met the beautiful Wraith Queen.'

* * *

He wanted to give her the whole world and knew the ship would do instead. But it also meant he had given Inej a means to leave him. So when she didn't, he felt that she had given _him_ the world.

She didn't stay in Ketterdam all the time though. The first few months, she and Kaz worked together to bring to justice some of the monsters they already knew about. Like Pekka Rollins. Inej was also not in a hurry to separate from her parents.

Kaz would watch from afar as Inej told them of her time since they last saw her. How she would crumple in their arms. He wished he could embrace her like her parents did.

Her parents wanted her to stay with them, not have anything to do with Kaz or Ketterdam. They wanted to rescue her. But she reminded them that she no longer needed rescuing; she was strong enough to rescue others, and they understood.

Inej had travelled around with her family for a while, collecting information about any known slavers as she did. She and Kaz always exchanged notes, always together even if they were not. And when they were, every now and again, he would still himself and slowly entwine his fingers with hers, a stormy night and peaceful daybreak every time.

It had been three years since Inej had waged her war against the slavers, captain of her own ship, the one Kaz had given her as a gift. After months of travel, she was back in Ketterdam. That morning she woke up in a guest room –her room- at Wylan's mansion and found a note left for her. It said to meet at a location followed by a single word: waffles. A smile spread across her lips at Kaz's handwriting.

* * *

The wrought iron railing was cold and rusty beneath his bare hands. Kaz felt a shift in the air next to him and turned to find Inej standing there.

'Good morning.' Inej glided forward and placed a swift kiss on his cheek.

He smiled and placed his hand close to hers on the railing. He was glad for her guiding steps –a kiss on the cheek, on his forehead, her fingers in his. She would do the action first, as if teaching a child, bringing him out of his shell slowly, and he would try to repeat it later. The quick kisses, the brushes of skin, weren't easy on him. But it became less hard. It was harder telling Inej about Jordie. He finally understood what she meant by having him without armour. She wasn't just talking about his literal gloves or anything. It was the unseen armour too, the unseen walls, that he had to take down.

They shared bits of news –Kaz of Ketterdam and Inej of her travels. They talked about what their friends, her family, were up to. They sat down for the promised waffles and sauntered over to the railing again afterward.

'Inej.' Kaz's gaze flickered. It was time she heard what was on his mind. Over these three years she had taught him to let go of his ghosts with each of the little touches. But he had more to learn. He needed her right next to him when it all got too much and he started shaking or felt like he couldn't breathe. He needed her to put him to sleep beside her when it happened. He knew her traditions wouldn't allow that. Giving one's body to another was seen as a sacred thing by the Suli. Living in the same quarters, sharing a bed, would also be frowned upon, even if the two people in it were too afraid to touch each other. It could only be preceded by vows of marriage. Now he knew of another reason why Inej's time at the Menagerie had been so painful.

So if he wanted to keep learning at her hands, wanted to see how far they could go, he had to do this.

Her eyes widened as he explained himself. It might take days, years, for him to fulfil the role of a husband properly. Perhaps it will never happen. He might never be able to give her children. But despite all that, he would try with every fibre of his being to make her happy. Finally he paused.

Kaz Brekker does not get down on his knees, but he did the next best thing. He took her hand in his slightly trembling one. 'Will you allow me to marry you?'

* * *

Kaz and Inej spent their wedding night lying next to each other on the bed with an arm's length between them. They never let go of each other's eyes.

She still left on travels for months at a time. Sometimes he went with her. Through it all he never stopped learning. He would try a quick kiss on her lips, would reach out and tangle his fingers in her hair next to him on the pillow. The first time they had properly kissed her face was streaked with tears. And he threw up right after. But she was always patient, and he would always come back.

'Try to focus on this moment,' she would murmur. 'Try to cut your mind from going back to other nights.' He knew she was saying this to herself as much as she was saying it to him. So they tried again and again until he could control the chaos in his mind every time they touched. There were still nights when he would retreat. Inej would understand, seeing him turned on his side, facing the wall. She would leave him alone and stay on her side of the bed, saying 'Goodnight, _my love._' The "my love" was in Suli, like it was a note to herself. He would reply, 'Goodnight, Wraith,' like "wraith" secretly meant "dearest."

* * *

'The witch had said,' Kaz continued, 'that the curse would break only when someone could make him whole again.'

The little girl's brows furrowed.

Children didn't deal in metaphors, he realised and explained better. 'It means someone had to do something very kind for him, be really kind to him. That's what the Wraith Queen did. You see, he gave her back her missing wings. In return the Wraith was kind to him. She made him whole. One day she took his hand to thank him, and he got very scared. But to his surprise, he didn't crumble.'

'He's not dusty anymore,' the girl announced.

Kaz grinned. 'You're right. The curse was lifted and he didn't crumble to dust.' Who said he wasn't good with kids?

The girl blinked heavy lids as he ended the story. Then her eyes became wide open, landing behind him. 'Mama!' She flung the covers aside and sat up. So much for Kaz tucking her into bed.

'Someone's awake.' Inej smiled at the girl, a hand on Kaz's shoulder. She walked forward and sat on the bed, taking her daughter into her arms.

'Papa told me a story about a dusty boy and a waith!'

Inej sat the child on her lap, both facing Kaz, 'Did he now?' After their daughter's commentary on the story, Inej tucked her back into bed, and she and Kaz stood up. Kaz lowered his lips to his daughter's forehead. 'Good night, _my love_,' said Inej.

Hand in hand, they went to their own room. They had come a long way. He had come a long way –their daughter was a testimony of that. And they still had a long way to go. They wouldn't stop, changing the world any way they can to make it a better one. For those they lost and those they still had. Like their daughter and each another.


End file.
